Crossroads for Women e-Newsletter

September 2008
 Greetings!
It's hard to believe it's already September! Kids are going back to school, the weather is getting cooler and the US is celebrating National Alcohol & Drug Addiction Recovery Month. I hope you enjoy this month's e-Newsletter, with a bit of a recovery theme to it.
September Recovery Month Events
National Alcohol & Drug Addiction Recovery Month
September is National Alcohol & Drug Addiction Recovery Month. The month provides a platform to celebrate people in recovery and those who serve them.

Maine will be celebrating with several events statewide:

Bangor - Thursday, September 4, 2008
Broadening the Base for Recovery: Promoting Recovery Pathways in the 21st Century, a Bangor area summit on addiction recovery featuring ME Atty. Gen. Steven Rowe
8:30am - 4:00pm @ Bangor Civic Center
Reception and recovery celebration from 4:00pm - 6:00pm
Cost: $15.00 (lunch provided)
Contact: Dawn Furbush, 207.992.4468 or email

Augusta - Saturday, September 13, 2008
Our Stories Have Power, a media workshop for people in recovery from alcohol and drug addiction
10:00am - 2:30pm @ University of Maine, Augusta
Cost: Free (lunch and refreshments provided)
Contact: Deb Dettor, 207.458.4366 or email

Winslow - Saturday, September 20, 2008
Recovery Celebration
8:30am - 12:00pm @ Fort Halifax Park
Cost: Free
Contact: Jeff Wilbur, 207.877.9922 or email

Portland - Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Recovery & Wellness Resource Fair
2:00pm - 4:00pm @ Preble Street Resource Center's Wayside Soup Kitchen
Cost: Free
Contact: Amanda Edgar, 207.756.8053 or email

Crossroads for Women will have a table at the Recovery & Wellness Resource Fair in Portland. FMI on these events, visit the following links:
Maine Alliance for Addiction Recovery (MAAR)
Recovery Maine on MySpace
View a full list of recovery month events in Maine

Back to Top
5 Things Families Can do to Support Loved Ones in Recovery
Supportive Hands The following 5 suggestions for family members dealing with a loved one new to recovery come from HBO's Addiction website:

1. Educate yourself on the recovery process for individuals and families.
2. If your recovering family member is living with you, provide a sober environment to support that recovery.
3. Seek professional and peer support (from a group like Al-Anon) for your own physical and emotional health. Support your family member's involvement in treatment aftercare meetings and recovery support groups.
4. Assist the recovering family member with assistance in locating sober housing, employment, child care, transportation or other recovery support needs.
5. Assertively re-intervene in the face of any relapse episode.
Read the full text of the article by William L. White, MA

Crossroads for Women also offers education and counseling designed specifically for friends and family members of women and men who struggle with addiction. Our next 4-week educational series, "The Effects of Addiction on Friends & Family," starts on September 9th and still has slots open. The series explores the basics of addiction, the recovery process and how to be supportive of the loved one while also taking care of you and is held in Portland. Find out more about the series or our services for friends and family members.

Cumberland Commons Transitional Housing
Cumberland Commons Transitional HousingMost people know about Crossroads for Women's residential and outpatient programs, but did you know that the agency also offers transitional housing?

Cumberland Commons is an 8-unit transitional housing development in Windham that provides safe, transitional living arrangements to single adult women and mothers who have completed a substance abuse treatment program or to women and mothers who have been affected by a loved one's addiction. Cumberland Commons has five 2-bedroom and three 3-bedroom apartments. One of these apartments offers the flexibility of sharing rent responsibilities with other roommates.

Women living in apartments without roommates may live with their minor children. Cumberland Commons accepts a variety of subsidized housing programs for its occupants, though those with resources will be charged a reasonable rental rate. All utilities are included in the rent. For more information, call 207.773.9931, email or download a flyer.

Back to Top
Join Crossroads for Women for a
Stylish Hair & Spa Party!
Head Games logo
Saturday, November 1, 2008
3:00pm - 8:00pm
Head Games Salon for Hair & Body
19 Temple Street, Portland

Call 207.773.8393 to book your appointment today
View a complete list of services or email Jen FMI
all proceeds from the event go to Crossroads for Women
Crossroads for WomenCrossroads for Women addresses substance abuse and other behavioral health issues so that women and their families can live healthy and independent lives. FMI, call 207.773.9931 or visit www.crossroadsforwomen.org.

Sincerely,
Jennifer Barbour
 
Jennifer Barbour, communications specialist
Crossroads for Women
In This Issue
September Recovery Month Events
5 Things Families Can do to Support Loved Ones in Recovery
Cumberland Commons Transitional Housing
Join CFW for a Stylish Hair & Spa Party!
From our Blog
Women & Substance Abuse blog
Would lowering the drinking age be helpful or harmful?
 
At this point, you've probably heard about the 100 or so college presidents that are asking lawmakers to rethink the current legal drinking age. Presidents from big named-schools like Duke, Ohio State, Tufts, Dartmouth and Syracuse came together quietly about a year ago under the direction of John McCardell, former president of Middlebury College in Vermont. According to McCardell, "This is a law that is routinely evaded," and "the people at whom it is directed believe is unjust and unfair and discriminatory." Read More

Relapse Prevention Planning
The July/August 2008 Addiction Professional has an interesting article on relapse prevention, written by Brian Duffy, LMHC, LADC-I. In the article, Duffy offers relapse prevention strategies to clinicians and those in recovery in relation to the top 6 triggers he's seen in his decade-plus experience in the substance abuse treatment field. Read More
Crossroads Links
Local Links

21 Reasons

211 Maine

AA Maine

Al-Anon Maine

MaineParents.net

ME Office of Substance Abuse

NA Maine

Nar-Anon Maine

Recovery Month Events / MAAR

Substance Abuse Prevention, Portland

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